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Global foundation assets reach $1.5 trillion

Global foundation assets topped $1.5 trillion, according to Harvard Kennedy School's Hauser Institute for Civil Society, which recently published its Global Philanthropy Report. U.S.-based foundations accounted for about $890 billion of those assets, followed by seven European nations with $518 billion in total assets. While the 86,000 U.S. foundations held the bulk of global assets, there are far more foundations in Europe. The study found about 154,000 foundations in Europe, with about 86,000 in the U.S.

The study also found that 59% of the foundations surveyed had less than $1 million in assets, and 32% between $1 million and $10 million. Foundations based in Spain and France maintained spend rates of 37% and 34%, respectively, while U.S. foundations spent on average 9% of their assets annually.